JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. - Jacksonville Beach Police Department staff were warned in a memo sent Monday from Police Chief Patrick Dooley that the owner of Cruisers Grill indicated his employees had and will spit in the food of law enforcement officers.
Dooley confirmed he sent his personnel the letter, urging them to use caution when eating at the restaurant on 23rd Avenue South. He said the warning stemmed from a traffic citation issued by an officer earlier this month because the restaurant owner’s tag was expired.
But Bobby Handmaker, the owner of Cruisers Grill, told News4Jax on Tuesday that he had seen the memo and the claims are completely false.
“It would be disgusting if it happened. But it doesn’t seem like it’s the type of thing that would have happened,” said Ali Talwar, a Cruisers Grill customer.
The long-standing restaurant has been serving customers in Jacksonville Beach, including Ali and Sue Talwar, for more than two decades.
“It’s reprehensible. They should never, ever do that to a policeman,” Sue Talwar said.
But when Jacksonville Beach police responded Monday evening to an alarm sounding at Cruisers Grill, officers wound up being the ones who were alarmed.
According to a police report, Handmaker spoke with officers about a separate incident, asking them why one of their fellow officers cited him for having an expired registration when his business has offered discounts to public servants for years.
The report said the officer told Handmaker that he could not resolve his complaint. That’s when Handmaker stated, “I have been made aware for quite some time now that some of my employees have been spitting in officers food and now I know why, because you all are bullies,” according to the report.
But Handmaker, who has obtained a lawyer, denied the claim.
“I am saddened to hear the false rumors that have been spread about Cruisers Grill, suggesting that police officers are not welcome at our restaurant. Such rumors are absolutely not true. For over 20 years, Cruisers Grill has supported our police officers. We continue to do so and welcome them at all of our restaurants,” Handmaker said. “We have offered, and continue to offer, discounts to our men and women in uniform and appreciate the opportunity to serve those who serve our community. There is no factual basis to any claims that Cruisers Grill does not support law enforcement. Any investigation would reveal Cruisers Grill and its over 100 employees have served our police, firefighters and first responders with the upmost respect for over 20 years. We will continue to.”
Customers said the outcome of the case could affect their decision to continuing dining at the restaurant.
And that's why agencies have policies against taking discounts. It happens, though. I'd think most people know better than to actually expect or ask for a quid pro quo. Tasteless.
With my life literally on the line, I would assume that Sue Talwar is a damned liar.
My life, my choice.
Close the place down, if the owner can't even keep his/her vehicle tags up to date.
Let’s wait for the truth to come out. Either the business owner is now lying about what he said, or perhaps the cop embellished his account of what happened because the business owner started to lose his cool in front of him. We may never know.
Either way, it doesn’t matter to me. They changed the recipe for their formerly awesome french fries last summer and after two tries to see if it was an anomaly, I quit eating there.